Murray's Ranking

Delpo will be interesting to watch this week. Sometimes he seems to have a bad week when he's done well the previous week. Look at him in Indian Wells this year. He got to the final there and then lost very early in Miami, just at the point when the pundits were talking about him possibly winning slams again and so on. I don't see Delpo overtaking Andy for that reason. I just don't think he's consistent enough.

Paris is a funny one. Of all the Masters it has to be the most open. Federer didn't play last year though, and neither did Nadal. Now, I haven't looked at schedules, but while I think Nadal probably won't show, I reckon Federer might, especially if his place in the WTF is still in doubt. I wouldn't be surprised to see him make an effort in Paris, just to try to prove a point.

The fall in Murray's ranking shows what a tough business it is to keep ones place in the top half of the top ten in tennis Many people take a month to fully recover from a bad dose of flu never mind a surgical procedurePatience is recquired here and soon he'll be back as no3 or no2

I think it is incredibly tough, but I think it's amazing and shows the gap to the almost, but not quite, top players, that he's been able to miss so much and will only drop next Monday, and has a good chance of staying top 4 in the year end rankings.

Andy's had a light schedule this year, much lighter than most of the top 10, plus a first round withdrawal and missing a slam. Rafa missed a slam, but he's played more tournaments, and you can argue he replaced the Australian Open with the South American clay-court tournaments, earning more points than a semi-finalist at the AO. He obviously played brilliantly too, so I'm not doubting his brilliant ranking points haul, just trying to make the point that Andy really has missed quite a lot.

If Delpo plays really well, he might over-take him this year, or early next year, but he's never been that good at stringing strong tournaments together in a row. If he does make a decent run of it, then he'll deserve a higher ranking. I'd like to see Andy hold his place, but I wouldn't begrudge it to someone on a genuine roll.

It is a bit frustrating to see Ferrer overtake Andy, when Ferrer has been playing poorly, but that's the name of the game with annual rankings, and he is a hard-worker.

Definitely - I think Andy would relish the challenge. And he'll have the freedom to play without having to worry about defending many points over the majority of the year, apart from at the AO and Wimbledon.

And also Miami. According to Tim Henman, even if he is 100% physically fit by the start of next season he could struggle initially to regain his confidence and get back to full match fitness, but so long as he's playing pain-free that's all that matters to me because the rest will follow. We might just have to be a little patient, that's all.

Delpo will be interesting to watch this week. Sometimes he seems to have a bad week when he's done well the previous week. Look at him in Indian Wells this year. He got to the final there and then lost very early in Miami, just at the point when the pundits were talking about him possibly winning slams again and so on. I don't see Delpo overtaking Andy for that reason. I just don't think he's consistent enough.

Paris is a funny one. Of all the Masters it has to be the most open. Federer didn't play last year though, and neither did Nadal. Now, I haven't looked at schedules, but while I think Nadal probably won't show, I reckon Federer might, especially if his place in the WTF is still in doubt. I wouldn't be surprised to see him make an effort in Paris, just to try to prove a point.

I agree about Delpo since his stamina is a little suspect.

It wouldn't surprise me if Fed plays in Paris, and Nadal almost certainly will as he has no reason not to this year - unless he decides that it's time his knee has another rest. Total stupidity having Paris and the WTF back to back now, although this is the price the top players have had to pay in order to get a longer off-season. On the bright side though it could mean London hosting the WTF for the foreseeable future.

And also Miami. According to Tim Henman, even if he is 100% physically fit by the start of next season he could struggle initially to regain his confidence and get back to full match fitness, but so long as he's playing pain-free that's all that matters to me because the rest will follow. We might just have to be a little patient, that's all.

I'd forgotten about Miami for some reason - thanks Aileen. I think Tim's got a good point and it may take Andy a while to be 100%. But on the positive side, at least he should be in peak form during the Wimbledon-USO stretch.

Those of us who remember when Andy hurt his wrist,had to retire ,was unable to play for a long time Correct me if I'm wrong,and people on this site usually do!! he even fell out of the top 20 for a short time. He came back and started to climb back up and down till he reached no2 position this Summer. I'm sure he'll do it again don't be fair weather fans All will be well given time

I suppose it could go either way when Andy does come back. He could struggle for a bit, having been out for a long time, but on the other hand the enforced break could do him the world of good, like it did when he had to miss RG. At Queen's he played some lovely, joyful tennis on his way to winning, it was like he'd never been away, and that seemed to go on into Wimbledon. He hadn't had surgery then though and I think that is the big question.

It strikes me that Andy's talent won't just up and go between now and January. The question is how his rehab will go, how his confidence is and whether or not he is pain free. That, to my mind is the key thing. To my mind if he can just play without pain the rest will follow, even if it takes a bit of time. I'm in no doubt that as long as Andy comes back fit and well his form will recover. Then he'll be in a position to well and truly mark Ferrer's card, or anyone else's for that matter.

All we need to do when Andy comes back is chill out about it. No carping on the match threads, no doom-mongering about his ranking, no suggestions that Ferrer is about to become the all conquering hero. In the long run Andy will be fine.

There's a slight difference between three weeks out and three months, especially after having a back op, assuming that he feels fit enough to start playing by the start of next season.

Andy on Facebook today -

No more tennis for me this year... won't come back till I'm 100 percent fit and ready to play..shame to be missing the 02 great tournament

So no Dream Cup participation either, which doesn't really surprise me given that it'll only be just over two months since his op. Going to be a real blow to him though if he has to miss the AO, so fingers crossed.

Woe betide anyone who dares to start spouting negativity once he does return to competition!!

You know, I'm not convinced Andy did mean to suggest he wasn't playing the exho. IMO, he just meant he wouldn't be playing any more official tour tennis. Unless things go horribly wrong, he's going to be playing tennis in training, so I don't think he's being that literal. At least I hope not.

It strikes me that Andy's talent won't just up and go between now and January. The question is how his rehab will go, how his confidence is and whether or not he is pain free. That, to my mind is the key thing. To my mind if he can just play without pain the rest will follow, even if it takes a bit of time. I'm in no doubt that as long as Andy comes back fit and well his form will recover. Then he'll be in a position to well and truly mark Ferrer's card, or anyone else's for that matter.

All we need to do when Andy comes back is chill out about it. No carping on the match threads, no doom-mongering about his ranking, no suggestions that Ferrer is about to become the all conquering hero. In the long run Andy will be fine.

You know, I'm not convinced Andy did mean to suggest he wasn't playing the exho. IMO, he just meant he wouldn't be playing any more official tour tennis. Unless things go horribly wrong, he's going to be playing tennis in training, so I don't think he's being that literal. At least I hope not.

I took it to be otherwise, but hope I'm wrong! Maybe it just slipped Andy's mind because obviously his focus was the WTF. I'm not being negative though because I realise he will have to start playing tennis at some point, but you don't play the likes of Delpo if not 100% fit. Also he would have to play more than one match. Anyway it's seven weeks away, and I'll be keeping an eye on the Dream Cup website. Meanwhile I just hope his rehab goes well and that he resists the temptation to push himself.